Capital Gazette Writer McNamara 'Always Fair In His Writing'

COLLEGE PARK (AP) — John McNamara loved sports. Most of all, he loved watching and writing about Maryland basketball.

McNamara’s passion for the Terrapins was a prominent theme during a packed memorial service Tuesday at the University of Maryland Memorial Chapel.

McNamara and four of his colleagues were killed on June 28 when police said a gunman with a grudge against the newspaper blasted his way into the Capital Gazette newsroom in Annapolis.

Although a newsman at the time, McNamara was a sports writer for decades. His prowess and professionalism were recalled fondly during a ceremony at his alma mater that attracted hundreds of people, including friends, family, colleagues and those whom McNamara touched through his work.

Before the two-hour memorial began, McNamara’s widow, Andrea Chamblee, went into the audience and hugged former Maryland basketball coach Gary Williams and current Terps basketball coach Mark Turgeon.

“I only knew John for seven years,” Turgeon said later. “I thought he was always fair in his writing, good or bad. He was a purist. As a coach, you liked when guys understand your game, and John understood our game. He’s going to be missed.”

McNamara, 56, wrote two books about athletics at his alma mater, one about football and the other about basketball.

“Everybody loved, everybody respected John McNamara,” said Johnny Holliday, the announcer for Maryland football and basketball games. “And he was as honest a reporter as I ever met.”

Featured on the stage at the chapel was a photo of McNamara covering a basketball game, and a red Maryland basketball jersey bearing his last name. An urn containing his ashes was placed in the forefront.

A job shuffle at the publication a few years ago resulted in McNamara being shifted from sports to news. At the time of the attack, he was an editor and reporter at the Bowie Blade-News and the Crofton-West County Gazette, writing features and community news.

McNamara handled the responsibility of his new job with the same measure of class he exuded as a sports writer.